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Friday, 11 October 2013

Brazil against NSA surveillance

Brazilian
lawmakers indicated that, in lieu of direct teleconferences with
Edward Snowden to gain further insight into allegations of NSA spying
in their country, they may seek to seize documents now held by
American journalist Glenn Greenwald.

On
Wednesday Greenwald spoke to Brazilian senators currently
investigating evidence of US as well as British and Canadian
espionage in the Latin American country.

The
legislators are part of a probe into potential foreign surveillance
-- the Comissão Parlamentar de Inquérito, or CPI -- called into
action by President Dilma Rousseff in the wake of initial news
reports alleging that even the president’s online communication had
been intercepted.

Greenwald,
who appeared along with his partner David Miranda, a Brazilian
national, broached several topics during the hearing, including the
possibility of granting asylum to NSA contractor turned whistleblower
Edward Snowden.

So
far, Brazil has been vague as to whether it would seriously consider
extending Snowden, who is currently residing in Russia, an offer of
political asylum.

"There
are many nations saying, 'We're glad to be learning all this
information,' but almost nobody wants to protect the person
responsible for letting the world discover it," Greenwald told
the panel.

In
the meantime, Brazilian legislators seem eager to find out the extent
of foreign surveillance on the country in greater detail.

To
that end, the country’s government -- specifically, the CPI inquiry
-- is now seeking to establish teleconferencing sessions with
Snowden.

Glenn
Greenwald (R), American journalist who first published the documents
leaked by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, arrives with partner
David Miranda to testify in front of the Brazilian Federal Senate's
Parliamentary Inquiry Committee, established to investigate
allegations of spying by United States on Brazil, in Brasilia October
9, 2013 (Reuters / Ueslei Marcelino)

Asked
by the commission to turn over documents obtained through the
whistleblower Greenwald refused, citing the need for a separation
between journalism and government. His partner, Miranda, also cited
that divulging the documents would constitute an “act of treason”
and prevent Greenwald from entering the US again.

One
Brazilian Senator, Ricardo Ferraço, went so far as to suggest that
the government commission seek the authority of the country’s
courts to seize documents now held by Greenwald if such communication
with Snowden proved unfeasible.

Unlike
allegations of NSA surveillance in the US, coverage of the agency’s
activities in Brazil have taken on a broader scope, and in particular
centered on the country’s economy.

Greenwald
himself has shaped the narrative of Snowden’s disclosures through
his testimony to Brazil’s government, as well as his work with the
O Globo newspaper and Rede Globo’s news television.

In
August, the journalist told Brazil’s government that alleged
American espionage in Brazil was centered on gaining economic
advantages rather than on any national security concerns.

"We
now have several denunciations that show that the spy program is not
about terrorism. It is about increasing the power of the American
government," Greenwald told senators on Wednesday, speaking in
Portuguese.

In
the most recent report last Sunday, Greenwald said on Globo network
television that Canadian spies had targeted Brazil's Mines and Energy
Ministry, intercepting the metadata of phone calls and emails passing
through the ministry.

The
impact of the steady stream of surveillance allegations on Brazil has
been swift. Last month Petrobras announced that it would be investing
$9.5 billion over the next five years to heighten its data security.

Meanwhile,
Communications Minister Paulo Bernardo announced that the country’s
government was pursuing legislation requiring domestic data exchanges
to use locally made equipment.

Brazilian
leaders have announced they plan to host an international conference
on internet governance next year, a declaration that comes after the
nation has lobbied without success to change NSA policies used by the
US to monitor Brazil.

President
Dilma Rousseff, after consulting with Fadi Chehade, chief executive
of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN),
announced via Twitter a conference would be held in April.

“We
have decided that Brazil will host in April 2014 an international
summit of government, industry, civil society and academia,” she
wrote tweeted Wednesday.

The
ongoing leaks from whistleblower Edward Snowden revealed that Brazil
has become a favorite target of the National Security Agency since
the US intelligence program launched the PRISM electronic
surveillance program in 2007. Along with monitoring the online
activity of Brazilian citizens, the NSA has quietly kept watch on
diplomatic activity and the South American nation’s oil giant
Petrobras.

Rousseff
has since put off a scheduled state visit to the US and used her
speech at the United Nations to condemn what she deemed “a breach
of international law and an affront” to Brazil’s independence.

“Without
the right of privacy, there is no real freedom of speech or freedom
of opinion, and so there is no actual democracy,” she said, adding
that “without respect for [a nation’s] sovereignty, there is no
basis for proper relations among nations. Those who want a strategic
partnership cannot possibly allow recurring and illegal action to go
on as if they were an ordinary practice.”

The
issue has simmered in Latin America, where Rousseff has made it clear
that Brazil will not stand for such activity. Her own personal
communications with presidential aides and other private phone
information was intercepted, according to the daily O Globo.

Rousseff’s
comments in front of the international delegation at the UN were
praised both domestically and abroad.

“She
spoke for all of us that day. She expressed the world’s interest to
actually find out how we are going to all live together in this new
digital age,” Fadi Chehade told Agence France-Presse. “The trust
in the global internet has been punctured and now it’s time to
restore this trust through leadership and institutions that can make
that happen.”

Chehade’s
ICANN is a Los Angeles-based non-profit organization responsible for
the coordination of global internet systems, including international
IP addresses, root name servers, and the introduction of new domain
methods, among others.